Grinder for gate valve inserts



March 18, 1947. c. CULP 2,417,737

' GRINDER FOR GATE VALVE INSERTS Filed June l19, 1945 2 sheets-sheer 1 I N VEN TOR.

18, 1947. C. CULP 2,417,737

GRINDR FOR GATE VALVE INSERTS Filed June 19, V1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR.

Patented Mar. 18,1947 e UNETE ST'E' il 1 Claim.

This invention relates to a valve grinder and while it can be employed for dressing or regrinding gate valve inserts of various kinds and sizes, it is especially useful in grinding gate valve inserts such as used in apparatus for manufacturing high octane gas. It has been devised to supplement the seat grinding means disclosed in my Patent 2,360,550, issued October 17, 1944. In such apparatus the valves are used to control strong acids and are provided with a special coating of acid resisting alloy. It is essential that the valves control to accurate measurements and if they develop slight leaks, they are of no further use. It has been the practice heretofore to ship these valves from the point of use to repair plants for the purpose of having them redressed and this has entailed a cost approximating three hundred dollars per valve if the valve is, for example, a four inch size.

An object of the present invention is to provide a grinder for gate valve inserts which can be used effectively at the point where the gas manufacturing plant is located and which will operate quickly and effectively to redress the valves, so that they can be fitted snugly against their seats and thus used eiciently, it being understood that the seats also can rst be Aground by the means disclosed in my patent herein mentioned.

Another object is to provide valve insert grinding means, the grinding elements of which are so mounted as to prevent the Vformation on the valve of score marks such as have generally been produced heretofore by the use of ordinary grinding methods.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds,

- the invention resides in certain' novel details of construction and combinations of parts and in certain steps in the method hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings Figure 1 is a front elevation of the valve grinder embodying the present improvements, a tapered valve being supported therein for rotation.

Figure 2 is a section through the apparatus taken on the line 2 2, Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged section through one of the grinding elements and the parts cooperating therewith, a portion of the driving shaft being broken away.

Figure 4 is a section on line 4 4, Figure 3.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, I designates spaced standards providing bearings 2 for a shaft 3 adapted to receive motion from any suitable source through belt and pulley mechanism indicated generally at ll. Supported by the lower portions of these standards are bearings 5 in each of which is journaled a sleeve 6 held against longitudinal displacement by collars l or the like. The sleeve projects beyond the bearing and this projecting portion can be formed with a longitudinal slot I8. It can also be provided with a pulley 9 secured thereto so as to rotate therewith, this pulley being adapted to receive motion through a belt I0 from a pulley I I on one end portion of the shaft 3.

As before stated each of the standards is provided with one of these sleeves. Each sleeve is of course driven by the same kind of belt and pulley mechanism from the shaft 3. The two sleeves are oppositely disposed and are widely spaced from each other. They are, however, coaxial and slidably mounted in each of the sleeves is a shaft I2 having any suitable means, such as a key I3 slidably fitted in the slot 8, whereby the shaft will rotate with the sleeve but can, at the same time, slide therein.

The two shafts approach each other along a common axis of rotation so as to provide opposed tapered ends I ll. Adjacent to these ends are collars I5 xedly secured to the shafts and designed to receive thrusts from coiled springs I6 which are mounted on the shafts and bear outwardly against the respective sleeves li.

The tapered ends of the shafts IQ project into tapered seats II located in the outer or back faces of discs I8. As the tapered end of each shaft does not completely fill the recess providing its seat II, it will be obvious that the disc thus is capable Aof a wobble or rocking motion relative to its shaft. For the purpose of transmitting rotary motion from the disc to the shaft there is provided an angular finger I9 which is extended from the shaft and projects loosely into a recess 20 formed in the disc at a point spaced from the seat I1.

The front or active face of the disc has a grinding disc 2l secured thereto in any suitable manner so that it will be caused to move with the disc I8. This grinding disc can be of any suitable abrasive substance capable of producing an extremely ne abrasive effect. The two grinding elements, each comprising a holding disc I 8 and a grinding disc 2l are oppositely disposed and are normally pressed by the springs toward each other. They can be held in operative communication with the shafts by the angular lingers I9 although they Will not ordinarily be maintained in positive operative connection with the shafts unless there is interposed therebetween the valve V to be ground and which valve thus will receive the pressure exerted thereagainst by the spring pressed grinding elements. Valve V can be supported in any suitable manner so as to be capable of up and down sliding movement or of rotation, if desired, while being subjected to the action of the grinding elements. Jigs of any desired construction or C clamps could be used for this purpose.

In practice the valve to be ground or renished is placed between the grinding elements and, because of the rocking connection between these elements and their shafts, the springs will hold the elements pressed tightly against diametrically opposed portions of the valve. Obviously because of their peculiar mounting, these grinding elements will adjust themselves automatically to the taper of the valve. After the Valve thus has been positioned the two shafts l2 are rotated at a high speed simultaneously and in the same direction. As the grinding elements are supported for wobble motion relative to their shafts they will have both a rotary motion and a rocking action. Thus by lowering and raising valve while the grinding elements are being driven, all portions of the tapered surfaces of the valve will be dressed smoothly without the production oi the score lines or other imperfections. The rotary wobble motion combined with the wiping action due to the raising and lowering of the element being ground is an essential characteristic of the mechanism.

Obviously the texture of the grinding disk can be varied to meet the requirements and there can be used ultimately suitable bung or polishing means in lieu of the abrasive disks. The springs maintain at all times the desired pressure of these disks against the work under treatment.

What is claimed is:

Apparatus for grinding tapered valves, including co-axial shafts spaced apart, means for simultaneously rotating the shafts in the same direction, tapered ends on the shafts, discs formed with tapered seats, mountable on the shafts, said tapered ends on the shafts being loosely receivable in the seats in the discs, whereby the discs may wobble relative to the shafts, grinding elements on the discs, said discs being additionally formed with recesses spaced from the tapered seats therein angular ngers on the shafts loosely receivable in the recesses, whereby rotation of the shafts will rotate the discs, and yielding means for pressing the shafts and discs toward each other.

LIDE CROCKER CULP.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are`of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,872,694 Drake Aug. 23, 1932 977,519 Fischer Dec. 6, 1910 2,285,318 Waldron June 2, 1942 1,836,542 Miller Dec. 15, 1931 2,264,177 Harrington Nov. 25, 1941 2,360,550 Culp Oct. 17, 1944 

